John Dewey Research Paper

John Dewey, a philosopher known for his strong stance on education, believed that to truly learn something you must experience it. Dewey created an elementary school that thrived off the principal of learning by doing. His students participated in cooking, sewing, textiles, gardening, and shop work so that they could understand the process, how it worked, and to appreciate its importance in daily life. His school of thought is referred to as pragmatism, which states humans learn best through applying experiences and thoughts to problems as they arise (Cohen, 1999). I believe in this approach and think that it is the best way to deliver information to students. I think that to truly understand something you must see it and experience it for yourself, you cannot just go off of what others have experienced. My educational plan is developed around this philosophy so that it will be the most effective in relaying the lesson. Agriculture is very important to me, and our society, and I believe that the public has a right to be educated on what is currently being produced around them. Program Objectives
As consumers
I will set up different tables with displays to initiate the hands on activity, which will be matching items to their respective partners. The first table will have agricultural examples like: corn, hay, plastic milk, and plastic eggs. The following tables will have plastic or stuffed versions of livestock such as: pigs, chickens, cows, and sheep as well as pictures of fields to coincide with produce supplied. Each table will have handouts with facts about local businesses that produce the items being exhibited. At the end of the activity there will be activity books, supplied by a local business, for the kids to take home. I hope to have a couple volunteers from the local 4-H club there to answer some questions the adults may have on the information provided in the